Why ‘solopreneurs’ are on the rise

Today’s way of working is more fluid than ever. Whilst many people still work for public or private organisations in a more traditional way, there’s been a clear increase recently in so-called ‘solopreneurs’ – people who work for themselves.

A growing trend

According to a report from the Office of National Statistics, Trends in self-employment in the UK: 2001 to 2015, the number of people in self-employment grew from 3.8 million in 2008 to 4.6 million in 2015. More people are choosing to work for themselves, either as a result of redundancy and the chance to do something different, or because they want more control over their work-life balance. Some are just ready to pursue a long-held dream, whilst others have a clear entrepreneurial spirit and want to build something they can sell on.

Defining a solopreneur

But not all of these people are solopreneurs. A solopreneur is someone who starts a business, but has no real intention or need for growth into a business with a team of people. Instead, they are content to work hard by themselves, building their business into something successful, but stopping short of hiring people and becoming a company in the traditional sense.

The ups and downs

Running your own business is hard work – particularly if you’re on your own. You have to cover all the tasks that are usually handled by a team of people: product and service development, marketing and sales, networking and business growth, finances and planning – and you actually have to do the work too.

On the flip side, solopreneurs have control of their own working hours; they can often choose which clients they want to work with; they can work from home or from a local base to avoid commuting; they can add and remove products or services as they see fit; they are largely in charge of their own destiny.

Being a successful solopreneur

So what does it take to be a successful solopreneur? People who’ve been running their solo business for a while have a lot of good advice available:

Talk to other people in the same position, and even in the same industry. You’ll learn a lot by seeing how others do things.

Join networking and business groups. Not only is this a great way to find new business; it gives you a ready-made support network.

Get help when you need it. A lot of tasks can be outsourced without it costing you a fortune. Save time and money by getting an accountant to help with your financial planning and tax returns. Use a virtual assistant for marketing support or to keep your databases up to date. Ask an IT company to run your backups and protect your equipment.

Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Your business is likely to change and there will be failures or issues along the way. Accept them, learn from them and be confident in yourself and the products or services you offer.

To find out more about how we support start-up businesses, solopreneurs and sole traders, contact Wise & Co today.